Much like jet packs and David Hasselhoff, there’s this common belief running through our very souls that big, stompy robots are among the greatest things ever. That said, there’s never any middle ground when it comes to games of this ilk: they’re usually either slow and monotonous affairs like Chromehounds (the first game of its sort on 360) or faster paced and more action-packed excursions like Konami’s superlative Zone Of The Enders or From Software’s own Armored Core franchise. In fact, it’s safe to say that Armored Core is the developer’s biggest and most popular franchise – spanning a whopping 11 games all together.

Armored Core 4 marks the 12th title in the series, and not only is it the first game to appear on a non-Sony platform, it also brings with it several amendments that should satisfy long-time fans of the franchise. The most obvious fix is that of the control scheme. Past titles were controlled with the D-pad and triggers, instead of making things much easier by using both of the analogue sticks. Armored Core 4, however, finally drops the archaic D-pad/trigger control scheme in favour of the far more contemporary analogue method. It’s a bloody good thing too, as this new control scheme just feels more natural to the player. Unfortunately, it still seems as if you need an extra set of hands to help you out with actually fighting other mechs – or ‘Armored Cores’ as they’re aptly called in this series. Either way, the new controls are a good start and they undoubtedly bring a far greater sense of manoeuvrability to missions.

While there’s a seemingly unprecedented amount of customisation on hand for each and every Armored Core – right down to their colour and the emblems you want to stick on them – it’s worth noting that casual gamers may find it just a tad too in-depth. At times, it feels less like you’re playing some action game with giant robots in it and more like a full-on simulation. That’s hardly news to fans of the previous games, but those checking out the screenshots adorning these two pages or the box in their local games emporium may find the extent to which they can outfit and design their ACs just a little bit daunting. For example, you can choose from two normal legs, a set of tank-like legs, four legs, a weapon for an arm, a rocket launcher, a grenade launcher, a missile launcher, a radar and so on – and these just graze the very surface. To everybody else, though, this is mech porn of the highest order.

What soon becomes apparent to those who give a damn about all this customisation business, is that you can essentially create and fine-tune your Armored Core units to match your preferred playing style… at least, some of the time anyway. It can become annoying that various missions, irrespective of how short or long they are, seem to rest entirely on you rigging the perfect set-up. Before each mission, it’s necessary to re-jig your design, so we’re grateful that you can save basic set-ups, otherwise we’d have to re-jig every time and that would be a bit of a chore. However, it’s still annoying to have to restart some missions and the look of your Armored Core because you didn’t expect a particular thing to happen in a level. We call it trial-and-error gameplay and it’s still a goddamn nuisance.

Speaking of the missions, they’re hardly a diverse mix, what with you mostly just having to blow the hell out of stuff. There are a considerable number of memorable set pieces, though, and the game never really loses sight of its epic edge. Sure, that’s something previous entries to the Armored Core series flaunted, but those games didn’t sport the refined controls, brand new boost option or highly detailed graphics of Armored Core 4. And really, the graphics do make a big difference when compared to previous games. Say what you will about Chromehounds in terms of gameplay, but the mechs were truly stunning to look at. The same can be said of Armored Core 4 – and there’s some pretty damn exceptional FMV on offer too. The story is forgettable, but there’s usually something nice and detailed to look at during the beginning and end of each mission, be that ingame or full motion video.

As you can tell, we’re quite taken with Armored Core 4. With its refined controls that change the way the game plays and feels, it’s more than just a yearly update. The customisation is dense, providing a far greater subjective feel and the action and simulation comes thick and fast. However, trial and error presents a sometimes frustrating experience. Just think of it as rust on an otherwise fun, sometimes stunning mechanical beast.

Craig Gilmore